This invention is related to the field of pet care, and, more particularly, to the fields of pet leashes and pet waste collection and disposal.
An indispensable tool for pet care, and particularly for dog care, is a restraining leash. Leash laws proliferate in most localities in order to minimize the nuisance and danger of loose pets. Increasingly, animal waste collection laws are also becoming the norm, which generally require a pet owner to collect and properly dispose of all solid pet waste which is generated off of the owner's own private property. Accordingly, any pet owner who is walking his/her dog through their neighborhood must take appropriate measures to ensure that any pet droppings are collected and disposed of in a proper manner.
The current state of the art for leash devices is a retractable leash which comprises a plastic housing for containing a coiled leash. The housing also includes a handle feature. An example of this type of leash is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,550, herein expressly incorporated by reference, although the flashlight disclosed in the '550 patent is not a typical feature of such leashes.
The current state of the art for pet waste collection is a plastic bag, which the pet owner carries along during a walk. When the pet defecates, the solid waste is collected by the pet owner in the bag. The bag is tied off, and the pet owner carries the bag to the next available waste can. Such an approach is generally effective, but is undesirable, and often unsanitary, as there is often a small hole in the bag or other problem which causes the owner's hand to inadvertently contact the waste.
Numerous prior art approaches to this problem have been proposed, none of which has been entirely successful. For example, some leash housings now include a compartment for storing the bags, both empty and filled, so that the owner does not have to carry the bag on his/her person. Other approaches include a device for hanging the filled bag from the leash housing a hook or the like. Various scoops for picking up the waste have also been proposed. However, none of these approaches have gained wide acceptance as a desirable solution to the problem.